Rome

Will be having a few hours in Rome next Sunday from 11.00 till 18.00 what do you please recommend to see in this short stop basically the highlights

Hi,

Can you just clarify your commitments before and after those hours, and whether you'll have luggage with you?

There's a big difference between, say,

- arriving in the heart of the city, unencumbered by luggage, at 11am and onward transportation which leaves the city at 6pm, giving you up to 7 hours

or

- a flight arrival time of 11am and a sailaway at 6pm, giving you effectively no time at all in the city.

A ho-ho is often a good way to get an overview of a city in a short space of time - but not in Rome.

They're restricted to the major streets, not convenient for places like the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain or Spanish Steps, and the only places of significant interest that you'll see are the Colosseum / Forum and Vatican. You'll see a great deal of the traffic and plenty of time to gaze out on the buses' parking lot at Termini rail station.

If you do have the time, I suggest head for the Colosseum (with tickets purchased over the 'net to avoid the ticket line), walk thro the adjacent Forum (same ticket) & perhaps as far as the Pantheon (no entry fee), then a taxi to the Vatican.

But it depends a great deal on how much time you genuinely have in the city.

JB :)

I agree. It would be very helpful if you can provide more details.

I looked up your cruise and believe it begins in Rome so can you please let us know do you arrive the day before or that morning.

Keith

I would pre-book tickets to the colosseum. And then add on a walking tour around the city; can can at least stop at many of the highlights even if you can't tour them.

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oh sorry we will have no luggage and we have a 7 yr old with us too, also this is the last day of our 3 night cruise and we have a couple of hours before heading back to Malta. the transfers from port to rome and from rome to airport already organised with the local agent. The time 11 to 6 is a free time with no luggage etc.. just we have some free time to have a look at rome thanks

Which sights to see depends very much on your interests, and which order to see them in depends whether your transfer driver can drop you and collect you at convenient places.

But here's my general suggestion.........

Do plan out your day but watch your time and be prepared to adjust your day accordingly.

As Sanger 272's post, buy your Colosseum/Forum/Palatine Hill tickets on-line in advance (one ticket covers all three sites, tho you'll likely not have time for Palatine Hill). You can then breeze past the ticket-office lines at the Colosseum, tho you'll still be faced by a security line.

After the Colosseum, enter the Forum & follow the paths broadly parallel to the main road, Via Dei Fori Imperiali, toward the large white building, the monument to Vittorio Emanuele II. This building is known as "the wedding cake" or "the typewriter" for reasons that aren't obvious seen from the Forum but a patently clear from the other side, which faces Piazza Venezia. There is a Forum exit behind the Wedding Cake, but not an entrance - so you can't walk this route in reverse.

There's a glass lift inside the monument, which takes you to a panoramic viewpoint at the top.

The Pantheon is only a ten-minute walk from Piazza Venezia, in front of the Wedding Cake, and you have to decide whether before the Pantheon you have time to divert to see the Trevi Fountain (adds ten minutes to your walk) and Spanish Steps (adds a further 20 minutes). Admission to the Pantheon is free and takes half an hour or less.

From there, walk (25 mins) or taxi (5 to 10 mins) or bus to St Peter's Square / Vatican. If you walk, go via Piazza Navona and the pedestrian Sant Angelo bridge for a full-on view of Sant Angelo castle.

If you want an in-depth tour of the Vatican and / or Sistene Chapel these will take a big chunk of your day - you would certainly have to sacrifice an inside visit to the Colosseum.

Here's that suggested route, excluding Spanish Steps.....

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/41.8905544,12.4911572/41.9015333,12.4561556/@41.8970034,12.4670688,15z/data=!4m29!4m28!1m25!3m4!1m2!1d12.482853!2d41.8957432!3s0x132f604cd855c107:0x2ac3f4617c7476c5!3m4!1m2!1d12.4830311!2d41.9006839!3s0x132f6052df57db4d:0x798f5852983c9e17!3m4!1m2!1d12.4768974!2d41.8991055!3s0x132f6051e16cad7f:0x9b6a8c1be54cb262!3m4!1m2!1d12.4728523!2d41.8992783!3s0x132f60500156c903:0x8eaf3319b4271f36!3m4!1m2!1d12.4664205!2d41.9021968!3s0x132f605c9cc8681b:0xfe01d8fd01ad1820!1m0!3e2

(Google refuses to walk through the Forum)

JB :)